The power of independent thinking

 

The power of independent thinking

An all-original poem by Sujay Rao Mandavilli

 

Independent thinking is for all intents and purposes, an incontestable and an interconnected art,

Indeed, it must be emphasized that it is a painstakingly cultivated and a well-rounded art,

A product indeed comprised mostly of toil, sweat, blood and tears,

With creative and intellectual inputs justly utilized,

And innovative skills befittingly enlarged and amplified,

With talent and artistic ability immensely and powerfully magnified,

With a steep and tortuous ascent, and rewards that in the end justify the sedulous efforts,

As opposed to the fruits of a filthy, downtroden and prostrate clart,

Not indeed one that is a mere digressed manifestation of chained and unfounded fears, 

Not just random or vaguely unpointed destiny,

And certainly and not in the least some accidental serendipity,

With a non-subjective and a focused harvest,

That reveals itself prolifically and in graduated measure to the noblest and the ablest,

You artful, accomplished and skillful creator,

You benign, steely and resolute inventor,

Of vigorous intellectual enterprise,  

As from your felicity accrues your eminence grise,

Independent thinking is also a carefully orchestrated skill,

That sets its measured and graduated results aside from tedious chores that are run of the mill,

It is also indeed the ability to apply one’s own self-nourished arts effectively and skillfully,

 

And to coordinate and to liaise the execution of multidimensional tasks dexterously,

 

Independent thinking is also in all ways a true and a meritorious science,

The application of which sets it apart from any dodgy and dubious proto-science,  

It also dons the hat of rigour, precision, testability and empirical objectivity,

And resultantly also wears the cloak of dignified and virtuous respectability,

Independent thinking provides a modicum of stealthy and surreptitious power,

And from the disrespectful chains of slavery added cover,  

It provides a fair quantum of arbitrage and leverage too,

From the swift and speedy trek of progress that the obscure shackles of dogma eschew,

Providing a liberal degree of fulcrum and propulsion,

From the manacles of servitude, independent thinking provides ammunition,

From enslavement, bondage and servitude it imparts a potent weapon,

Indeed independent thinking is the hallmark of true intellectualism,

It is the hallmark of an erudite person, not of blind-eyed confirmism,

The hallmark of a true and bonafide thinker, not a blinkered myopist,

The true sign of a undisputed scholar, not an unthinking dogmatist,

The calling card of a well-rounded person, not an inexpert maladroit,

The hallmark of a self-made man, whose intellectual habits and traditions are clever and adroit,

We know that we don’t know only when we think independently,

As this is a fitting indication of ingenious and inventive originality,

Leaving aside all pretentions and roadblocks in the name of ideology,

Dedication and commitment will also result willy-nilly,

Willingness to do good to science and society to a respectable degree,

Through rigorous self-discipline and not just some random entropy,

Efforts made to kindle and rekindle one’s own curiosity endlessly and cyclically,

You take on risk too though only to a highly reasoned degree,

Non-servitude provides you momentum and pedigree,

Perseverance, steadfastness, and self-effort throw in their lot as well,

Along with fecund creativity and individuality meritorious,

Don’t lose your spark of madness at any count,

Even as you let go of all things fleeting and superfluous,

And demolish all lingering signs of ruinous self-doubt,

Even as you the arcane canons of tedium and monotony flout,

Trust your raw gut, your reflex and your instinctiveness,

As that indeed imparts and bestows loads of inventiveness and distinctiveness,

So get down to brass-tacks and knuckle down,

Cogitate, ruminate and introspect heavily and bear down,

And yours eventually shall be the victorious crown,

Envision big and bright and dynamically ideate,

Novel paradigms and holistic frameworks amalgamate,

As you change the status quo and build the new,

Castigate tradition if necessary and take big steps forward too,  

For the heavy dead hand of tradition is a banality,

It languishes and causes everything to languish in lifeless unoriginality,

Independent thinking is life’s change agent for sure,

Even as we elevated caliber and lofty ideals ensure,

Stooges, lackeys and thumping boys you must certainly not be,

Nor underling, minions or lame puppets be,  

Or regimented and staid like a cat’s paw,

Much like vacuous and disoriented men of straw,

So, pull up your socks,

And think laterally and out of the box,

Discoveries are rarely anticipated,

The direction of progress is chaotic and unexpected,  

But robust interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches will your gantry be,

Independent thinking is the surefire mantra for success veritably,

A necessary adjunct and concomitant for all times to be,

For all that is good, beautiful and free,

The recipe for long-term success and the path to the inalienable cup of victory,  

So, think powerfully and independently,

Though also always tread cautiously,

And do not certainly proceed and stumble ruinously,

Don’t rebel for the sake of it and without a fair cause,

Therefore, rebel warily and only with just and apposite cause,

Don’t discard, jettison or castigate everything summarily,

Don’t compare anything unfairly,

Because apples will always be apples and oranges will always oranges be,

Along with innovation and creativity self-discipline and self-regulation are also always necessary,

Go far enough, because that is where you’ll find the truth and all that is beautiful to behold and see,

But be warned and do not let yourself go recklessly and aimlessly adrift or get lost at sea,

Indeed that will be a disaster and a monstrous catastrophe,  

Specialize if necessary, you artful aphorist,

Quite unlike Thomas Young the skillful generalist and versatilist,  

The limits of knowledge must be known, fathomed and understood serenely,

Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater catastrophically,

Take what is good and improvise,

That is the counsel of the prudent and the wise,

Think far and push the visible boundaries and push the envelope,

Be bridges and build bridges as the harbinger of bright hope,

Break all shackles of fossilized convention,

And you will automatically thwart all unholy opposition,

Your biases artfully rein in and your powers of self-help master,

Understand the Dunning Kruger effect in all seriousness and infer,

The true power of calculated and managed intelligence capture,

And you will break all barriers and shatter the glass ceiling too,

We are not born with a silver spoon,

We do not inherit a golden cup,

The dreary shadows of darkness are but temporary,

Shadows of dogma and shadows of skepticism lay down their arms wicked and icy,

It will all eventually be yours the esteemed and relished pantheon of glory,

Therefore dabble, delight and dawdle in your cherished whims if necessary,

Dabble in the weird and the out of the ordinary,

Don’t at any rate and come rain or shine lose your originality,

Be unique, be different, and if necessary be a generalist,

And at the same time, also where necessary be a specialist,

At the same time my intimate friend,

Latch your wagon to a distant and yet invisible star,

And at your feet will land a dancing star,

Amplify your strengths and work around your weaknesses,

Find your passion, your love and your fervent calling,  

And revel indolently in your obsessions,

Frenzied thinking and enigmatic puzzles are your prized possessions,

Challenge norms and challenge stereotypes,

And be prepared to half-lose your mind,

To each his own chaos,

To each his own madness,

Labour and toil if necessary alone,

In order to find the philosopher’s stone,

Let people think you are all cracked up to be and loony,

Even as you revel in a richly deserved moment of epiphany,

Your fruits a richly forested tapestry,

You are endowed with the genius gene,

Divergent thinkers often beat raw and unfiltered geniuses,

In the dead heat game of competitive drudgery,

Lost in the lonely tedium of monotony,

The naked truth is that only the legacies of independent thinkers shall modify and inherit the earth.